1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improvement in the hand-operated controls for a motorcycle, and more specifically, to a control lever that is used for hand actuation of a brake or clutch of the motorcycle. Specifically, the design of the control lever facilitates concurrent operation by a single hand of the rider of both the control lever and a rotatable handgrip with which it is associated.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional motorcycles have handlebars equipped with two handgrips, one of which may have a fixed position but the other of which is usually rotatable for controlling the throttle of the vehicle motor. In addition, the conventional motorcycle is equipped with two pivotally mounted control levers, one associated with each handgrip. One control lever is utilized to control the clutch of the vehicle, while the other is utilized for actuating the front wheel brake.
The pertinent prior art includes U.S. Pat. No. 3,720,111 issued Mar. 13, 1973 to Guyton and later reissued as U.S. Pat. No. Re. 28,943. The Guyton patent shows a control lever having an actuating handle which is curved in such a way that it may be manually grasped by the three smallest fingers of the motorcycle rider, while the forefinger of the same hand remains in place on the handgrip without being engaged by the handle of the depressed lever.